Gehe/Herba - Pharmaceuticals

United Kingdom
31/03/2000
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Background

Acquisition of Austrian Herba by the German Gehe. Gehe takes a majority shareholding in Herba through a public take-over bid. Both companies’ core business is in the pharmaceutical wholesale trade, but they operate in different geographical markets. Gehe is active in Germany, Belgium, Ireland, Italy, France, Portugal and the UK. Herba operates in the area of drugstore wholesaling, logistical services and distribution for pharmaceutical manufacturers, mainly in Austria.

Assessment

The Commission’s investigation showed that both the trade and procurement market remain divided along national lines. Further special features of the pharmaceutical wholesale trade are that both pharmacists and suppliers can switch from one wholesaler to another at short notice, while the choice of a particular medicinal product usually depends on the prescribing doctor, and so cannot be influenced by pharmacists or wholesalers, and prices are governed by legislation. The Commission therefore decided to clear the operation. The text of the decision is in German. (Case n° COMP/m.1716, Decision of 12/01/00).

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